Jose Mourinho has made a decision on who will be Manchester United's captain for Europa League final

Manchester United will be hoping to lift their third trophy of the season when they take on Ajax in the Europa League final on Wednesday.

Jose Mourinho’s side have already claimed the Community Shield and the EFL Cup and will be looking to complete a fairly underwhelming treble by winning their first either Europa League trophy.

However, Mourinho has a big decision to make ahead of the match.

While he’s likely to make wholesale changes ahead of United’s Premier League clash against Crystal Palace this afternoon, the Portuguese boss must decide who he wants to be his captain heading into the final.

With club captain Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick likely to be on the bench and Zlatan Ibrahimovic ruled out through injury, Mourinho must look elsewhere.

Chris Smalling has often been next in line this season but he could also miss out after picking up a minor injury - while Phil Jones and Daley Blind could be preferred at centre-back.

Mourinho's decision

Therefore, according to the Mirror, Mourinho has decided it will be Antonio Valencia that leads the Red Devils out in Stockholm.

The right-back took the armband in both legs of United’s Europa League semi-final against Celta Vigo with Rooney, Carrick and Smalling out injured.

And, given that United progressed, Mourinho is willing to give Valencia another chance to lead the team out on Wednesday.

That doesn’t necessarily mean it will be Valencia lifting the trophy if United do triumph, though.

It’s likely to be Rooney’s final appearance for the club and, even if he doesn’t play a part, it will surely be him lifting the trophy if they overcome Ajax.

And Mourinho has also suggested that Ibrahimovic could go with him to lift it.

“I hope we get to the final. I hope he can go to his stadium,” Mourinho told beIN Sports when asked about Ibrahimovic. “I hope he can go with the captain and get the cup.”

On the pitch, though, it looks as though it will be Valencia - who won the club’s Players’ Player of the Year this season - that will be trying to inspire his teammates to victory.

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